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Monday, December 25, 2017

Not just bite, dog’s scratch too causes rabies. Fifty-year-old Savita (not her real name) was brought to rural doctor Himmat Bawaskar's hospital in Mahad on a May afternoon with an undiagnosed condition, but the diagnosis became obvious when the doctor mentioned 'pani' (water). Savita severely choked just as patients with rabies do on developing its welldocumented symptom - hydrophobia (fear of water).
"She was brought to us on the fourth day of fever, bodyache and breathlessness. She heard 'water' and got a laryngeal (vocal cord) spasm," said Dr Bawaskar. Soon, doctors noticed another rabies symptom -extreme sensitivity to light.
Dr Bawaskar, who is credited with several researches on snake and scorpion venom, has written about Savita's case in the latest edition of the Indian Journal of Critical Care Medicine to highlight poor awareness and dangerous societal practices vis-a-vis rabies. "People in rural areas go to tantriks after a dog-bite though the vaccine and immunoglobulin shots are available at government centres," said the doctor.
Savita died after four days at the Mahad hospital, managing to relate how a rabid dog in her village had bitten four people before tugging at her saree 'pallu'. She got a few abrasions on her feet. According to the medical journal, Savita washed the wound and didn't bother about a vaccine as she felt only dog bites cause rabies. She only took herbal medicine from a tantrik.
Dr Bawaskar, who has been in the news for filing a case against a diagnostic chain for offering him a cutback for referring a patient for a CT scan, said Savita must have got infected as dogs' nails and claws too harbour the virus as they keep licking them. "This case busts the myth that cuts don't result in rabies," he said. Vaccine is advised for any cut where blood flows out.
#rabies #bites #cuts #vaccination.#travel

Vampire bat rabies kills hundreds of cattle a year in Peru.The vampire bat is known to be the principle reservoir of rabies throughout Latin America, yet the burden of vampire bat-transmitted rabies on human lives and livestock has been largely anecdotal. Now, researchers have calculated that, in Peru, more than 500 cattle a year die of rabies.
Rabies is among the most important zoonoses for human and animal health in Latin America. The common vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus) is the principle reservoir, and the main prevention methods are culling of bats and vaccination of humans and livestock. In Peru, recent geographic expansion of vampire bat rabies (VBR) has raised public health concerns, but the true incidence of VBR and the rate of under-reporting of cases is unknown.
#rabies#publichealth#agribusiness.

How to promote agribusiness with incubation hubs. Agribusiness is the new gold and many people are moving into the sector but the growth impact is not as evident as it should be because of lack of organisation/structure in the industry.
The issue of incubation hubs in agribusiness will promote the industry,provide more jobs and expand the value chain markets which is where more money can be accessed. Incubation hubs will give budding entrepreneurs platforms to start and grow the business and expand making more money.
Agribusiness today is big business and currently only the very big are calling the shots,but with incubation hubs many more will have opportunities. How will the incubation hubs work?
1) It is a place where entrepreneurs churn out their ideas.
2) Ideas are analysed and market possibilities are charted.
3) Production is set in motion.
4) Entrepreneur start to think about how to grow and multiply the business.
Why is the incubation hub important? Growth is the main purpose for the hub. The budding entrepreneur has to contend with a lot of factors which basically stifles growth,but if an incubation hub takes away most of these factors,then growth is inevitable. Lets look at this idea: an entrepreneur wants to start making fruit juices ,he has to contend with power,rent of factory,employee, registration,documentation and so many hidden charges. When the budding entrepreneur sits down to calculate all he needs to start,he will have a rethink and postpone his startup and if he strives to startup he can only go mum-and -pop and if the idea is so great,the big guys will take over and hes out of business.
Entrepreneurs in incubation hubs have a leverage such that much more can be done with his capital. Agribusiness with development of the value chains is a money spinner,but incubation hubs are the keys to drive the vision. Thinking agribusiness,business development? think incubation hubs. Incubation hubs are more like furnished office spaces that you rent,you just go in do your business and go home.
Agribusiness hub, a place setup for production,processing,packaging, distribution and even exportation.The entrepreneur will just come in with idea,produce,package and sell while the hub will take care of necessary documents.#NAFDAC#NEPC #employee #certification. The profit is worked out at a percentage that is fair for all parties and this will regulate the industry as you can easily trace and track products.

Starting your SME with zobo leaves, lollipops and Popsicle made easy. These are the steps to turn your zobo to refreshing lollipops for sale. The lollipops could be made at home using cups or you get a mould to make for large scale production.
How to make lollipops with zobo leaves. 1) get the leaves,clean and wash . 2) boil the leaves for 45 mins. 3) pour in clean bowl and add flavor. 4) pour in your mold and freeze or pour in your plastic cups and freeze. 5) remove from mold /cup when frozen and enjoy. #Christmas #giveaway #money #startup #agribusiness #leanstartup.

Saturday, December 23, 2017

Sorrel leaves popularly called zobo leaves is used to produce a healthy nutritious drink. Hibiscus sabdariffa commonly referred to as ( SOBO LEAVES/sorrel leaves), has various uses and several benefits in man . Its referred to as sobo leaves and has found usefulness in treatment of hypertension, weight control, ant-inflammatory agent, diuretic and as a soothing tea.
The leaves are also boiled,flavored and served as a refreshing drink,the leaves can also be used for preparation of jams,jellies and wine. The fiber from the plant have been used to make ropes as a substitute for jute bags. The leaves are known to be a good source of iron,calcium, niacin,vitamin C B vitamins,, carotene as well as manganese. The sobo leaves also contain protein,phosphorus,fat and fiber making it a perfect nutritional meal.

Sobo leaves are beneficial to man for health and wealth. The zobo leaves can be used to produce many products that have huge financial gains and minimal startup capital. The leaves can be used in the following ways to start an SME. 1) Tea production. The leaves are cleaned, dried and packed into tea bags such that the consumer draws the bags in the hot water. The processed leaves can be packed and sold in fanciful packs,where consumers pour the packed leaves into boiling water and then sieve the leaves out of the pot and drink.

Tea bags materials can be sourced here
2) Flavored drinks. The leaves are cleaned,washed and then boiled. The drink is filtered when cool and different flavors are added. The flavors are either natural or sweeteners depending on your market,sugar is the most common sweetener. The drink can be flavored with ginger, watermelon,strawberry or oranges. This can be packed in bottles or nylons for school children.

3) lollipops/Popsicle can also be made using the zobo leaves. The leaves are picked and washed then boiled. The filtered drink is flavored and poured into the Popsicle maker to make a healthy treat for kids. The lollipops can be made without the Popsicle maker by using cups.The drink is poured in the cups,then the stalk/holder is set in the cup and frozen. The lollipops are removed from cup when fully set.

Friday, December 22, 2017

A visual database of human plasma compounds.Researchers have created a database of metabolites from blood samples collected from over 5,000 Japanese volunteers, making it freely available online as a valuable resource for researchers around the world.
Metabolites and proteins control many of the processes inside our bodies, and also inform the interaction between our cells and their surroundings. Understanding these compounds and how they relate to each other more, could help researchers to evaluate the health state of people and develop new personalised treatments for various diseases.

Heroic rats detect land mines and now they might help save an endangered anteater.The pangolin, an endangered anteater that is one of the world’s most poached animals, could use a hero. Fortunately, a big rat is training for the job.
Actually, 11 African giant pouched rats are. At a research center in central Tanzania, the 2-foot-long rodents are learning to detect the smell of pangolins’ armor-like scales, which are smuggled to Asia for use in sham traditional remedies. If the rats succeed, they and their twitching noses could eventually deploy to ports, national park borders and even highways to sniff out illegal shipments and help bust traffickers.
The species already has a strong track record in detection. The Belgian organization APOPO has been training their “heroRATS” to find land mines for 20 years, and it says the animals have helped clear more than 100,000 mines from former war zones. In the past decade, the rats have been used to detect tuberculosis, a highly infectious disease that public health facilities often miss. They can screen 100 mucus samples in 20 minutes — a job that would take clinics four days — and APOPO says they’ve boosted TB detection by 40 percent at the clinics they work

Echbee Foods.

Echbee Foods

About Me

A vet surgeon with experience in small and large animal practice. I have also worked in the public health sector as an officer in the abattoir, also do poultry,fish farming and snail rearing extension services.I am into production and distribution of animal health care products.
I am certified in food safety: have training in food safety/knowledge and diploma in food safety.
I am also passionate about arts and crafts,beads and jewelry making , I run Echbee ethnic place.